Congestion at the top of the Albany Basketball Association men’s A-grade table as finals loom

Three sides share equal points at the top of the Albany Basketball Association men’s A-grade standings with two rounds remaining in the regular season. Ambassadors have 32 points after round 14, while Sonics and Barking Owls have joined them on 32 and are only separated by percentage after wins on Tuesday night. Sonics jumped from fourth to second after defeating Tigers, while Barking Owls downed Ambassadors to sit in third place. A dominant second half from Sonics helped them run out comfortable 17-point winners against Tigers. Sonics led by just six points at half-time but quickly pushed their margin to a game-high 19 points midway through the second half. They went on to outscore their opponents by 11 points in the final 25 minutes. Kye Griffiths and Corey Jerrard both dropped eight points as Sonics prevailed, 43-28. Danial Abbott, Corey Hill and Bodhi Holmes hit eight points each for Tigers in a heated contest. Raiders under-18 development squad notched their second win of the season, clinging on to a tense five-point victory over Railways Tigers. With 10 minutes left in the game, Raiders led by 15 points but Railways kept coming and reduced the margin to single figures more than once. However, Raiders responded, pushing the margin to double figures again, and despite Railways scoring the last six points of the game through Kyle Smith, Raiders prevailed, 55-50. Jordan Pansoy hit three long bombs on his way to 11 points to help Raiders while Matthew Jerrard chipped in with 11 points. Kane Shephard did everything he could for Railways with 21 points and Smith toiled hard with 17 points. A brilliant three-point shooting display from Luke McGuire helped Barking Owls defeat ladder leaders Ambassadors. McGuire knocked down six three-pointers on his way to 25 points while Jordi O’Neill added 19 points in the vital 67-60 win. Barking Owls trailed by three points at the main break but hit top gear in the second half to run out seven-point victors. Meanwhile, Denmark Magpies pushed their way into the top four after downing Infernos by 10 points in their clash. Infernos slipped to fifth place as a result of the 40-50 defeat, failing to recover after trailing early in the match. Jed Finigan dropped 18 points for Denmark in their seventh win of the season and Reagan Hutchinson added 12, including two long-range baskets. For Infernos, James Kirby top scored with 11 points.